I thought that Arizona was too quick and too strong and more determined than Utah.
Too strong:
1. They pushed our offense so far away from the basket with their physical play and pressure that we really really struggled to get into our offense and get anything going and sometimes didn't even get a shot off. Most of the time, we handled the ball 20 or more feet from the basket. Some times, I think we wait too late in the clock to really try to initiate something serious offensively. That leads to bad shots and forced drives that end up in long rebounds and turnovers.
2. Almost every player they had had a strength advantage on his Utah counterpart and that really showed on the boards as we just got pushed around. I realize we play a lot of freshmen though they do too. The Utes need to seriously hit the weights this off-season. Against top Big 10 teams, really a "bangers conference" where they let them play, we'd struggle against their top teams. The PAC-12 isn't that physical of a conference. Hopefully, with a year or two of maturity and hard work to get stronger we can have a more physical presence.
3. Delon didn't help his NBA stock tonight as he struggled against strong players who matched his quickness. They took him out of the game. Though a senior, he needs to get stronger to make it in the NBA. An outside shot and stronger mid range game would also help. He reminds me a lot of Andre Miller in his craftiness but lacks Andre's mid range game and strength.
Too quick.
1. In the half-court, we were backing off them 4-5 feet out on the perimeter (unless the guy was a 3 point threat) for fear of getting beat off the dribble which happened anyway. Some guys were dribbled to 10' as our defenders backed up trying to stay in front of them. It's hard to give up the much that easily and outplay someone one on one. They were too quick for us. Their quickness also showed in their ability to get to the ball and dominate the boards.
Too determined.
1. Rebounding is a great barometer of determination and effort and we were man-handled on the boards. Rebounding is as much or more about determination (blocking out, going after the ball aggressively) and effort as it is about height and athleticism. That's why a guy like Paul Millsap at 6'7" (he's not 6'8" or 6'9" - I've met him a couple times up close and he might have an inch on me - I'm 6'6") lead the NCAA 4 years in rebounding. Millsap jumps well and has great anticipation and hands but he's just so damn determined to get every rebound and seems surprised when he doesn't. AZ was far more determined to go to the boards hard than Utah.
The good news:
We're really young and have a ton of talent and we're a better team than we showed tonight. Guys will get stronger (in the off-season) and more experienced and Coach K will address the lack of determination on the boards so this is still going to be a great year. I can still see this team winning 22-23 games this year with 13 wins already and 13 conference games left (ignoring the end of season tournament). I think a run to the Sweet 16 is possible but play gets pretty physical in the NCAA tournament (particularly if you get some Big 10 refs) and Utah needs to be more physical and aggressive. It will be interesting to see if Utah can play U of A much better in SLC. I would expect so though I'd still bet on U of A from what I saw tonight.
I suspect we'll see a much more hard-nosed effort against Washington State. Utah will be more than ready to prove that the early season wins were not just big wins against so so teams (UCLA and USC are at the bottom of the PAC-12 standings).
This post was edited on 1/17 8:24 PM by mmoffitt321801
Too strong:
1. They pushed our offense so far away from the basket with their physical play and pressure that we really really struggled to get into our offense and get anything going and sometimes didn't even get a shot off. Most of the time, we handled the ball 20 or more feet from the basket. Some times, I think we wait too late in the clock to really try to initiate something serious offensively. That leads to bad shots and forced drives that end up in long rebounds and turnovers.
2. Almost every player they had had a strength advantage on his Utah counterpart and that really showed on the boards as we just got pushed around. I realize we play a lot of freshmen though they do too. The Utes need to seriously hit the weights this off-season. Against top Big 10 teams, really a "bangers conference" where they let them play, we'd struggle against their top teams. The PAC-12 isn't that physical of a conference. Hopefully, with a year or two of maturity and hard work to get stronger we can have a more physical presence.
3. Delon didn't help his NBA stock tonight as he struggled against strong players who matched his quickness. They took him out of the game. Though a senior, he needs to get stronger to make it in the NBA. An outside shot and stronger mid range game would also help. He reminds me a lot of Andre Miller in his craftiness but lacks Andre's mid range game and strength.
Too quick.
1. In the half-court, we were backing off them 4-5 feet out on the perimeter (unless the guy was a 3 point threat) for fear of getting beat off the dribble which happened anyway. Some guys were dribbled to 10' as our defenders backed up trying to stay in front of them. It's hard to give up the much that easily and outplay someone one on one. They were too quick for us. Their quickness also showed in their ability to get to the ball and dominate the boards.
Too determined.
1. Rebounding is a great barometer of determination and effort and we were man-handled on the boards. Rebounding is as much or more about determination (blocking out, going after the ball aggressively) and effort as it is about height and athleticism. That's why a guy like Paul Millsap at 6'7" (he's not 6'8" or 6'9" - I've met him a couple times up close and he might have an inch on me - I'm 6'6") lead the NCAA 4 years in rebounding. Millsap jumps well and has great anticipation and hands but he's just so damn determined to get every rebound and seems surprised when he doesn't. AZ was far more determined to go to the boards hard than Utah.
The good news:
We're really young and have a ton of talent and we're a better team than we showed tonight. Guys will get stronger (in the off-season) and more experienced and Coach K will address the lack of determination on the boards so this is still going to be a great year. I can still see this team winning 22-23 games this year with 13 wins already and 13 conference games left (ignoring the end of season tournament). I think a run to the Sweet 16 is possible but play gets pretty physical in the NCAA tournament (particularly if you get some Big 10 refs) and Utah needs to be more physical and aggressive. It will be interesting to see if Utah can play U of A much better in SLC. I would expect so though I'd still bet on U of A from what I saw tonight.
I suspect we'll see a much more hard-nosed effort against Washington State. Utah will be more than ready to prove that the early season wins were not just big wins against so so teams (UCLA and USC are at the bottom of the PAC-12 standings).
This post was edited on 1/17 8:24 PM by mmoffitt321801
